What makes a man move from rockabilly to country and western? Sometimes it's a bigger audience. Sometimes the rockabilly guy was country before he hopped on the rockabilly bandwagon and it was just easier to go back to what he was originally doing. In Johnny Dollar's case, it might have been that his life became just the hard luck story that country and western songs are all about.
Dollar recorded a few rockabilly songs that didn't get released. not back when he recorded them. The hard luck story may have started there. The recordings finally saw the light of decades later, not because Johnny Dollar was a marquee name but because a rockabilly revival occurred that had everyone looking for unreleased masters of every rockabilly burp and fart recorded back in the day.
In the late fifties Dollar had given up rockabilly and became an insurance salesman. In 1964 a chance meeting with Ray Price got his foot in the country and western door, and he signed with Columbia. Still, shit did hit fan. He had four failed marriages, became an alcoholic, fought depression and then developed throat cancer and had to quit singing. In 1986, he killed himself. I could not find any mention of his dog dying or his house getting repossessed.
Dollar recorded a few rockabilly songs that didn't get released. not back when he recorded them. The hard luck story may have started there. The recordings finally saw the light of decades later, not because Johnny Dollar was a marquee name but because a rockabilly revival occurred that had everyone looking for unreleased masters of every rockabilly burp and fart recorded back in the day.
In the late fifties Dollar had given up rockabilly and became an insurance salesman. In 1964 a chance meeting with Ray Price got his foot in the country and western door, and he signed with Columbia. Still, shit did hit fan. He had four failed marriages, became an alcoholic, fought depression and then developed throat cancer and had to quit singing. In 1986, he killed himself. I could not find any mention of his dog dying or his house getting repossessed.
As much as I like his rockabilly sides (the first three below) I must direct you to the complete WTF that is the introduction of his de rigueur tear-jerker "Forever is Over". It's the fuzz Dad, as in full-on Davie Allan worthy fuzz at the beginning of the song. Exactly four notes of fuzz. That's it. Dude couldn't get a fair shake anywhere
~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~
Listen:Johnny Dollar - Car Coated Baby mp3 at Rockabilly Hall
Johnny Dollar - Slim Jim Baby mp3 at Rockabilly Hall
Johnny Dollar - Green Eyed Cat mp3 at Rockabilly Hall
Johnny Dollar - Crawling Back To You mp3 at Rocky 52
Johnny Dollar - Forever is Over mp3 at Rocky 52
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